"PSTCL officials misused funds to the tune of Rs.100 crores"

May 29, 2017 05:52 PM

Punjab News Express/Vinod GuptaCHANDIGARH: Punjab State Power Transmission Corporation Limited (PSTCL) has misutilised funds of about 100 Crore in the transmission organization due to wrong decisions , alleged Charanjit Singh retired Chief Engineer.He said that he has brought all the wrong doings in PSTCL to the notice of its management but no action or investigation has been taken in the matter.

132 KV sub-station was erected at Sarainaga near Muktsar at a low lying area and subsequently more than Rs. 6.5 Crore were spent for raising plinth level of substation yard. Without learning any lesson from this PSTCL planned 220 kV substations at Banur , Bhawanigarh and Ladhowal 3 -7 feet below road level. In future the plinth level of all these sub-stations will be raised at hefty cost.

Last year more than 10 towers of 220 kV transmission lines fallen flat allegedly due to extremely poor quality of workmanship in case of erection and commissioning of transmission lines. It may be mentioned that nothing happened to nearby 66 KV transmission line erected decades ago.

With half-baked proposal pertaining to automation of five substations in P&M Circle, Patiala , the transmission organisation have got approval of competent authority to drain the scarce resources of PSTCL to the tune of about Rs. 10- 12 crore . However when challenged strictly on technical grounds & merit , the proposal has now been kept pending.

There are more than 140 unauthorized commissioned 11 KV vacuum circuit breakers (VCBs ) and subsequently PSTCL and PSPCL authorities has given ex post facto approval.. It may be mentioned that after fire disaster at 3 substations along with numerous trippings , shifting of these VCBs has been approved.

Charanjit said that due to shortage of manpower last year 100 MVA transformer got damaged at Mandi Gobindgarh. The delayed commissioning of two substations at Bhari and Kapurthala for more than 8 months after incurring hefty amount to the tune of Rs 40 crore speaks volumes about inefficiencies.

PSTCL management has manipulated illogical purchase of 132 kV CTs and PTs more than Rs. 4 Crores which will not be utilized in future because of upgradation of 132 kV substation to 220 kV substation. Further last year shortage of material was detected at Jullundur store to the tune of more than Rs. 4.5 Crore.

All these illogical spending have a affect on the tariff order , said Charanjit Singh.